As our reliance on digital technology grows, so does the importance of protecting our systems and data against security breaches.
In this article, we explain a security breach and its main characteristics. Let’s get to them!
What is a security breach?
A security breach occurs when an unauthorized intruder bypasses a system’s security measures and gains access to protected data. Breaches can result from external attacks by hackers or internal actions, such as employees accessing information they don’t have permission for.
In cybersecurity, a security breach can have serious consequences. Individuals’ personal and sensitive data can be stolen and used for malicious purposes, such as identity theft, running phishing campaigns, or financial fraud. Organizations can also suffer significant damages, such as loss of intellectual property, damage to their reputation, and loss of customer trust.
Security breaches can occur in any type of system or network, regardless of the information it contains. This includes, for example, computer networks, database systems, and mobile devices
With the development of the Internet of Things (IoT), even everyday devices such as refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, or thermostats can be vulnerable to security breaches.
Detecting a security breach is a challenge for organizations. Attackers often use sophisticated techniques to hide their activities so that breaches can go undetected for months or even years. For this reason, companies invest in intrusion detection technologies and tools to monitor their different attack surfaces for suspicious activity and findings.
Once a breach is detected, responding quickly to neutralize or minimize the damage is crucial. This can involve identifying and repairing the exploited vulnerability to taking compromised systems offline and notifying any affected parties.
In many cases, law also requires organizations to report their security breaches to the appropriate authorities.
You may be interested in our publication→ Information Security: 5 Best Practices to Implement in Your Company.
Types of Prominent Security Breaches
Security breaches can lead to a large number of vulnerabilities. Among the highlights are:
Confidentiality Breach
A confidentiality breach is a specific type of security breach that occurs when the confidentiality of data is violated. In terms of cybersecurity, confidentiality refers to the practice of maintaining the privacy of information, ensuring that only authorized individuals can access it.
Confidentiality breaches have different causes. An attacker can exploit a cybersecurity system vulnerability to access protected data, an employee can lose a device containing sensitive information, or a user can be tricked into revealing their password through a phishing attack.
The consequences of a confidentiality breach are often severe. For an organization, it can lead to loss of competitive advantage, reputational damage, and possible legal penalties for non-compliance with data protection laws due to security breaches, in GDPR.
Integrity Breach
An integrity breach is a specific type of security breach that occurs when the accuracy or consistency of data is altered without authorization. In terms of cybersecurity, integrity refers to ensuring that information is accurate and has not been improperly modified.
Integrity breaches can result from malicious actions, such as a hacker’s attack that alters data, or they can result from unintentional errors, such as a system failure that corrupts data.
When an integrity breach occurs, data that should be trustworthy is no longer trustworthy. Many organizations use hashing techniques and digital signatures to ensure data integrity. These techniques allow organizations to detect any data tampering. However, it is not impossible that even these techniques could be compromised in a cyberattack.
Availability Breach
An availability breach is a specific type of security breach that occurs when data or systems are unavailable to authorized users when needed. Regarding cybersecurity, availability refers to ensuring that systems and data are accessible and functional when needed.
Availability breaches result from various incidents, from system failures and human error to malicious attacks.
The most common attack that causes an availability breach is a denial-of-service (DoS) attack, in which the attacker floods a system with traffic to overload it and make it inaccessible.
Users cannot access systems or data when an availability breach occurs, impacting service and business continuity. Organizations should have disaster recovery and business continuity plans to recover quickly from an availability breach.
What should I do if I’m affected by a security breach?
When an organization suffers a cybersecurity breach, it needs to act quickly to:
- Identify the nature and extent of the incident.
- Isolate affected systems to prevent further damage.
- Document details of the incident.
- Communicate the breach to stakeholders, including customers if their data is compromised.
- Inform the relevant authorities.
- Investigate and remediate the breach.
- Review and update security policies and procedures.
Keys to Prevent a Security Breach
Data breach prevention is essential in any corporate cybersecurity strategy.
Some keys to protecting your organization are:
- Awareness and education. Personnel are the first line of defense against cyber threats. The organization should provide regular cybersecurity training to keep everyone informed about the latest threats and how to avoid them.
Security policies. Establish clear policies on the use of company systems and data. This includes strong password policies, use of VPNs for remote access, and restrictions on the use of personal devices.- Updates and patches. Keep all operating systems and applications up to date. Cybercriminals often exploit vulnerabilities in outdated software.
- Firewall and antivirus. To protect your network, use a robust firewall and antivirus software that is always active and up-to-date.
- Two-factor authentication. Implement two-factor authentication whenever possible. This adds an extra layer of security, as it requires a second form of identification in addition to the password.
- Backups Make regular backups of all important data. This will allow for faster recovery in the event of a data breach.
- Incident response plan. Develop an incident response plan. It should include how to identify and report a data breach and the steps to contain and recover from it.
- Security audits. Conduct regular security audits to check the protection status and identify and remediate any vulnerabilities.
- Data encryption. Sensitive data must be encrypted to protect it in a breach.
- Vulnerability detection. Continuous monitoring of the different attack surfaces, external and internal, for real-time detection of any security breach that occurs.
If you want to learn more about cybersecurity, check out our publication→ The Cybersecurity Trends You Need to Know About.
Repercussions of a security breach
When a company suffers a security breach, these are the main consequences it must face:
Financial Damages
Security breaches have financial repercussions for businesses. Direct costs include system recovery and repair, as well as potential fines and legal penalties.
Indirect costs can include losing customers due to mistrust, damage to the company’s reputation, and diminished brand value. In addition, businesses may face costly litigation from affected customers or employees.
Reputational Damage
A security breach can significantly damage a company’s reputation for protecting its brand. When customer personal data is compromised, trust is eroded, leading to a decline in customer base and sales.
In addition, negative perceptions of the company can affect relationships with business partners and investors.
Reputation recovery often takes a considerable amount of time and requires high investments in security and public relations campaigns.
Data Loss
Data loss is a devastating consequence of a cybersecurity breach. Lost data can be specially protected by laws such as GDPR and include sensitive customer information, intellectual property, financial records, and more.
Its loss can mean disruption to business operations and require considerable effort to recover or rebuild data. In addition, the leaked data can be used for illicit purposes, such as identity fraud.
Kartos by Enthec helps you avoid security breaches
Kartos Corporate Threat Watchbots, the Cyber Surveillance and Cybersecurity platform developed by Enthec, allows your organization to proactively, continuously, and in real-time control key aspects to avoid security breaches that jeopardize the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of corporate data.
Through monitoring of the Internet, the Dark Web, the Deep Web, and social networks, Kartos detects exposed security breaches affecting your organization’s information in real-time so that you can correct and nullify them before they are used to execute a cyberattack.
If you want more information on protecting your digital assets with Kartos Corporate Threat Watchbots, contact us and discover all the solutions we offer.